Cheech Tremendous

Derek Lowe gave them 220+ innings last year at a 3.x ERA. He's not a world beater, but he was a decent gamble for a top of the line starter based on his extreme GB/FB ratio. He also avoided resigning Beltre, which makes him a genius right off the bat. His goal was to lower payroll and pick up short term pieces until the kids were ready to play in '07. He was well on the way to accomplishing that goal.

How the hell could you support Plaschke? He basically ran DePo out of town when he was doing a good job at GM. That team last year was killed by injuries.

Sam would be a monumental upgrade at the point for the Lakers, but I don't think I'd put them in the Phoenix, Dallas, San Antonio class just yet.

I doubt it. I remember watching that episode and there is a 0% chance I was home on the 4th of July watching wrestling. It most certainly was last July 4th when that took place. Okay, so I totall misread the first post. When I read superkick and biggest feud I was thinking of Lance Storm and the WCW Invasion. Disregard what I said earlier.

Hopefully he has learned some people skills since his debacle in LA. He ought to send a picture of his ass to Bill Plaschke and sign it "Love, Google Boy."

Knowing Sam's history, I don't think he'd go to the Lakers for the midlevel exception. He's probably tyring to bid himself up. I think he ends back up with the Clippers.

I doubt it. I remember watching that episode and there is a 0% chance I was home on the 4th of July watching wrestling.

I consider the Tigers the real deal as far as the regular season goes, but I fully expect them to lose to either Boston or Chicago in the playoffs. I feel the same way. They are the real deal and they are going to the playoffs, but they are likely to struggle down the stretch and into the playoffs. While the pitching is good, at this point, they don't have a reliable ace or closer, and while the hitting is good, they are relying on too many guys who are either young or playing above their heads a little.

I'm glad that there is at least some confirmation that Phoenix wasn't taking him because I didn't buy that story for a second. Let's see, here's a player who is so far off the radar that he isn't listed in the media guide, can't be found on any mock draft, or mentioned in any columns or internet rumor sites, but got so hot on draft night that Isiah had to rush to pick him and Phoenix decided there was no one even worth looking at after he was off the board? Bullshit.

I've never really agreed with this line of thinking. The goal shouldn't be making the playoffs as a lower seed team, it should be building an organization that can compete for championships. The AI+Webber mess has shown that having two overpaid All-Stars and nothing else can't win. Why trade AI for another overpaid guard who does basically the same thing? If you've decided that you can't win with AI, and the entire team you've constructed is built to win that way, you have to blow the whole thing up. You move players out for young guys, draft picks and cap room. Chicago, Toronto, Cleveland, Orlando, etc. have all taken this approach and seems to be working.

I'm not sure that I can speak for someone else, but I know that I won't even watch Smackdown. The spoilers always sound horrible. Really, is there anything redeemable about the show at this point?

People say this all the time. It almost never works that way. I agree with you Al. I just didn't go into enough depth in explaining myself. The teams at the top of the AL East are tightly packed this year, but they aren't good enough to beat up on the rest of the American League like usual. So while they will be in a dogfight till September, they won't be padding their record against non-division opponents. 90 or so wins will probably win the division, but that won't be enough to compete against the beasts of the Central. EDIT: CanadianChris stole my thunder.

Balkman was a horrible pick all around. Doug Gottlieb mentioned on ESPN radio today that he wasn't even in the media brochure because no one really expected him to get picked. If New York was really that interested in him, they could have just traded a future second round pick + cash to some team who didn't want their second rounder this year. Mardy Collins seems like an okay pickup, but does this team really need another combo guard? New York needed an overhaul and they just got role players. At least Knicks fans can rest a little easier knowing that Isiah only has one year left to screw things up before he is shown the door.

The Boston rumor has really taken off because it seems Danny Ainge is willing to do anything to get AI, be it adding a third or fourth team in the mix just to get the pieces Philly wants. The deal would have been done yesterday, but management has balked at the idea of trading him within the division and haunting them the next few years. Honestly, I don't get that point of view because the balanced schedule and playoff format makes the current divisions essentially meaningless. Philadelphia Inquirer, Boston Globe and ESPN are all reportng that Philly has decided 100% on trading Iverson. I don't trust Billy King to get much, if any, value back for him. Baron Davis is a lateral move at best. They should be thinking young, cheap talent.

Steve Blake, with Jarret Jack backing him up, same as it was this year. Sebastian Telfair was the third string PG. Giving him up means nothing in the scheme of things. Hopefully he'll thrive in Boston, but they seem to have a logjam at the point with West, Telfair and Rondo, not to mention that AI is likely coming to town.

If Boston wants the WS though, they NEED to win the division. That is true. There is no way that the wild card will come out of the AL East this year because the division is just way too tough. It is too early to tell at this point how things will shape up the rest of the year, but the Red Sox are the best team and should win the division. I will never count the Yankees out of anything, but Boston should only get better as they get healthy and start bringing in some of their touted AAA prospects.

No, it's stupid for a bunch of other reasons, namely writers and analysts using the stat as a way to measure the success of a pitcher. Jenks is good, but Papelbon has something like 0.40 ERA. But most importantly it leads to managers misusing their bullpen because of "save situations."

Which continues to show that saves is one of the stupidest stats in baseball. I think the game would be a lot better if they just abolished the save.

Funny story I heard this morning about the Portland-Minnesota trade. Minny was picking Brandon Roy for Houston, who would trade the 8th pick (Randy Foye) and Luther Head back to the Wolves. Portland heard about the trade, drafted Foye and forced the Minnesota's hand into trading them the player they wanted along. Gotta love the GM skills of Kevin McHale. The Blazers came in with the 4th and 31st picks in the draft, and left with Roy, Aldridge, Rodriquez, Freeland, Dickau, LaFrentz and a bunch of future 2nd round picks. Now they just need to get Isiah on the phone to unload Miles and Randolph and this team will be well on its way.

So I am an admitted Red Sox homer through and through, but I love this year's team and definitely think the World Series is a distinct possibility. They have the one of the best defenses in baseball (infield is the best for sure, but the OF drags them down a little) and are currently leading the league in runs scored. The back end of the bullpen is nasty. The team still needs a reliable 4th and 5th starter, but the top 3 would probably be enough to get by in the playoffs. The AL is stacked this year, but I think they division is theirs.

Dude, you need to relax a little bit. All I've ever heard was how great OKC did as a temporary home for the Hornets and how they alleviated all the pressure from the players. All the analysts have great things to say and it has definitely earned OKC the first rights to the next NBA franchise. The Hornets can't move there because it would be a political nightmare. It would look like they stole the team for NO at their weakest moment. That's why owners and players say those things privately, because they know they can't openly support a move.

I think it's Dama who has a bug up his ass, not ESPN. Oklahoma City did a great job supporting the Hornets this year, and probably earned themselves a franchise in the future, but let's not get carried away. The Hornets played there because a natural disaster destroyed their city. It was a temporary home... you don't take the Hornets out of New Orleans. It's just wrong. Who's to say that OKC would keep up that support long-term? They basically got a one year audition for a team. Franchises that are new to an area draw great support at first. Chris Paul's comments also shouldn't be weighed that heavily because he was a rookie and had never played in New Orleans. To him, OKC was the home.

Winners- Portland - I was totally confused with what they were doing last night, but now that the dust has setteled I think they were the clear winners of the draft. They completely overhauled their roster and got arguably the two best players in the draft, Brandon Roy and Lamarcus Aldridge. Chicago- Drafted two players who are going to be able to contribute next year while they are still developing. Probably the best situation for Thomas and Thabo. New Jersey - For drafting so low in the first round they picked up a couple of guys (plus Adams in the 2nd) who should be decent NBA players and help fill out the depth they desperately need. Memphis - Stole Rudy Gay away from Houston, added a good player in Kyle Lowry and brought back Swift. It should infuse the team with some much needed athleticism. Losers- Seattle - They were a playoff team two years ago and now they are on life support. Not only did they waste a top 10 pick on a guy who couldn't even do a layup a year ago, but they have two other center projects that haven't contributed a thing yet. Ugh. New York - Needed to hit a homerum. Drafted Balkman and Collins. Nuff said. Atlanta - Needed a point guard and ended up with a major reach in Shelden Williams. He'll probably be an okay post player, but that was something they could have addressed in free agency instead of a top 5 selection. Phoenix - Had two first round selections and gave them away for nothing because they were too cheap to pay their salaries. Not a good message to send to your fanbase.

Well, the OKC fans were great for them last year and that was nice of Chris Paul to say, but they really were a team without a home.

Just got off the phone with my friend the Sonics fan, who couldn't watch the draft this year: Sonics fan: So who did Seattle draft? Me: Saer Sene Sonics fan: Who? Me: Some guy from Senegal. He's tall but is going to be a project. Sonics fan: How much of a project? Me: Fran Fraschilla said he was teaching him how to do layups at Eurocamp last summer. Sonics fan: .... awesome.